Welcome To Your A-200

First Drive Guide

This guide will show how to set up your crawler for your first drive after unpacking from the cases. For more detailed information on features and functions, see the specific sections of this manual.

Connecting the Tether

Insert the keyed tether and into the tail piece of the crawler. The keying feature of this termination makes it impossible to plug in incorrectly. Once the connector is fully inserted, thread the collar onto the tailpiece. 

Deployment

To deploy the Crawler, ensure the correct wheel setup is installed for the pipe being deployed into. See the wheel options and sizing chart in the Systems Overview page.

Face the reel towards the direction of inspection. 

Lift and lower the crawler with a combination of the lifting hook provided and the tether. This two point contact system will allow you to angle and aim the crawler into the the pipe.   

Once the front wheels are in the pipe remove the lifting hook and then the crawler can be driven forward while supporting the rear with the tether. once full in the pipe, set the reel distance to zero and begin the inspection process. 

Cruise Control

Cruise control allows the user to set a consistent wheel speed for the crawler allowing for greater focus on camera control and uninterrupted inspections.

To activate cruise control, press the cruise control button or the assigned controller button while driving forward. Cruise control will maintain the speed of the crawler when the button was pushed. 

The cruise control icon will show in the top bar of the app with the percentage of speed currently selected. To increase the percentage press forward on the drive control. To reduce, pull back.

To cancel the cruise control mode, press the cruise control button at the bottom of the app again or press the programmed button. 

Retrieval

Retrieval works much in the same way as cruise control does, but in reverse. This feature allows for simpler retrieval processes. 

The way in which this feature works depends on which type of real you are using in your system. For the differences between the manual reel and the powered reel see each description below.

Manual Reel Retrieval 

Once the retrieval button is pressed, the system enters retrieval mode. Once the user starts pulling the crawler backwards by the tether, the crawler will begin driving backwardsas the user pulls on the tether. Once the user stops pulling, the crawler will ramp don the speed to a stop. This automatic driving allows the operator to wind up the manual reel while the crawler is driving.

Once the retrieval button is pressed and the user pulls back on drive control, the system enters retrieval cruise mode. Once the user starts pulling the crawler backwards by the tether, the crawler will begin driving backwards until further input is registered or the minimum stop distance is reached as set in the reel settings menu. This automatic driving allows the operator to wind up the manual reel while the crawler is driving.

Once the crawler has reached the entrance of the pipe press forward on the drive controls or press the retrieval button to exit the automatic driving mode.

Powered Reel Retrieval 

Once the retrieval button is pressed and the user pulls back on the drive control, the tether will begin winding up. Once tension on tether starts pulling the crawler backwards the crawler will begin driving backwards until further input is registered.

The reel will automatically stop once it has reached the minimum stop distance as set in the reel settings menu. 

The Retrieval mode can also be deactivated by holding forward on the drive controls until the speed drops to zero, pressing the E-stop button on the powered reel, pressing any combination of the rocker switches on the powered reel or by pressing the retrieval button again.

Once the crawler is out of retrieval mode, drive the crawler back out of the entrance of the pipe until the lifting hook points can be seen, balancing the crawler on the front wheels if necessary. Lower the lifting hook and attach it to the crawler. Similar to deployment, use the tether and the lifting rope to angle and balance as necessary while lifting the crawler out of the deployment site. 

Once the crawler has been removed from the deployment site rinse the crawler thoroughly to remove any debris before storing. 

If access buildup of debris is found to be impeding the movement of the wheels, remove and clean them according to this section of the maintenance manual

There are multiple batteries in your Pipe Crawler system which are required to be charged. Note the vehicle, controller and powered reel chargers are ‘smart’, meaning there will be no harm in leaving the chargers plugged in overnight, or giving your Crawler a quick charge for some extra life on your next inspection. A top-up charge can be given at any time (during lunch for example). This will significantly increase the working time of the crawler. Leaving the batteries fully drained for long periods of time will cause permanent damage. We recommend fully charging them every 3 months to ensure they do not fully self-discharge over time. Do not attempt to use any charger other than the supplied Deep Trekker™ chargers for either the crawler or controller. Ensure the Deep Trekker™ chargers are only used in dry indoor environments above 0°C (32F).

Charging Your Crawler

When the crawler battery is low, the controller will give a warning and the motors will drive slower. As the charge further depletes, the controller will give a final battery critical warning and the crawler will eventually shut down. To charge the crawler, unplug the tether cable from the crawler and plug in the charger in the same tether port on the rear of the crawler. It will take around an hour and half to fully charge the crawler. A green LED in the charger brick indicates a fully charged crawler (or unplugged charger), while a red LED in the charger brick indicates a charging battery. Once fully charged, the system will last 3-8 hours depending on crawler usage. 

When used with a Powered Reel, the vehicle can also be charged during operation by using the Tether Charge feature. This requires the reel to be plugged into the wall through AC, but allows for continuous operation. This setting should be enabled by default, however to verify navigate to MENU → SETTINGS → REEL and turn ‘Tether Charge’ on. When the crawler is not in use or connected to a charger ensure the tether port on the rear of the crawler is covered with the provided tail cap.

Charging Your Controller

When the handheld controller battery is low, the controller may stop sending data to the crawler, rendering it unusable. The controller may be charged while the system is still in use. But, should only be done when the unit is safely indoors and in a dry environment. Ensure to only use the Deep Trekker™ provided chargers, and in environments above 0°C (32F). The controller is powered by a separate built-in battery pack that will require a charge approximately every 3-4 hours of run time. When the battery pack is low, the controller battery indicator on the controller will turn red. If the unit is not given a charge within 5 minutes of this warning, the battery will reach a critically low level and communication with the crawler will stop. To charge the controller, simply plug the controller charger into the charge port on the rear of the controller.

The Tablet controller has it’s own specific Charger provided.

Charging Your Powered Reel

When the powered reel battery is low the controller will give a warning. At this point the reel has the option to enter ‘Manual Reel’ mode to preserve battery or it can continue as normal. If the reel reaches critically low battery it will automatically enter Manual Reel mode to give the operator as much time with the reel features as possible. To put the reel back in its normal mode it must be plugged in. 

The reel may be charged while the system is still in use but should only be done when the unit is safely indoors and in a dry environment. To do so, simply plug the reel into the wall using the provided AC power cord. Ensure to only use the Deep Trekker™ provided chargers, and in environments above 0°C [32F].

The charger indicator lights are visible through the view port windows in the back panel of the reel. The unit is charging when the LED on the charger is red. When charging is nearly complete, the LED will flash green and red.  Finally, the LED will turn green to indicate full power.